Minister Bensaid Defends Artistic Freedom Amid 'Wlad Yezza' Controversy

Tuesday 07 May 2024 - 08:20

Amidst the uproar surrounding the Ramadan series "Wlad Yezza" (Children of Yezza), Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, the Minister of Youth, Culture, and Communication, has finally spoken out. Accused of undermining the sanctity of the teaching profession and impacting its dignity, authority, professional status, and social role, the series faced harsh criticism from educational unions throughout the holy month.

Responding to inquiries from Khalid Sati, a representative of the National Union of Labor in Morocco (UNMT), Bensaid asserted that "the characters in any dramatic work stem from the imagination of the scriptwriter and have no connection to reality." He considered that "comedy, by nature, affords the author a certain liberty to navigate the world of characters, modifying them to adapt to the comedic text and render them acceptable to the audience." This reasoning applies ideally to the character of Ali, the teacher in the series in question.

Seeking to dispel the criticism, Bensaid added that "this character is purely imaginary and has no link to the reality of teachers, and is far from tarnishing the image of the educational family." He emphasized that "every television production is subject to viewing processes before and after production by competent commissions and authorities."

The minister explained that "national media, including the National Broadcasting and Television Company through its television works, strive to respect human dignity in general, and that of the Moroccan citizen in particular, as well as the professions they exercise. They do not diminish their value but rather defend and expose their problems, honoring their men and women through their programs, news bulletins, and dramatic works, in accordance with the ethical charter of this institution."

It is worth noting that the National Union of Education, affiliated with the Democratic Labor Confederation, had filed a complaint with the Higher Authority for Audiovisual Communication (HACA), expressing its discontent over what it termed the "continuous targeting" of teachers through national channels. The union demanded the cessation of the controversial series' broadcast and official apologies from the state channel.

Furthermore, the National Federation of Education (FNE) also reacted. In a letter addressed to Latifa Akharbach, the president of HACA, signed by Abdellah Ghmimat, its national secretary-general, the FNE denounced "the flagrant contempt and infringement upon the professional dignity of teachers," while demanding the audiovisual regulatory authority's intervention to halt the program's broadcast and secure official apologies.

However, Bensaid's remarks appear to have closed the debate, reaffirming artists' right to freedom of expression within the realm of fiction while assuring the respect for professions and the dignity of citizens by public media outlets.